
•- . • : . '- ■'. 



TX 723 
.M3955 
Copy 1 






Class JJLX2& 

Book M2> 

Copyright N° 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



SIMPLE 
OALIAN 




ANTONIA ISOLA 

cHcS . 




HARPER & BROTHERS 
NEW YORK AND LONDON 
M - G - M - X - I - I 



<*i 



COPYRIGHT. 1912, BY HARPER & BROTHERS 

°RINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

PUBLISHED FEBRUARY, 1912 



©CI.A305650 



IK 



K 



CONTENTS 



PAGE 



Soups 3 

Macaroni and other Pastes 9 

Rice, Etc 18 

Sauces 29 

Eggs 35 

Fish . 39 

Vegetables 42 

Meats 51 

Salads 58 

Desserts 60 

Index 63 



SIMPLE ITALIAN 
COOKERY 



SIMPLE ITALIAN 
COOKERY 

SOUPS 

Beef Soup Stock 

(Brodo di Came) 

i pound of round of }4 pound of beef bones 

beef 2 small potatoes 

2 quarts of water I onion 

2 small, new carrots, i tomato, fresh or 
or yi of an old canned 

carrot Parsley- 

Boil the beef, bones, and vegetables in two quarts 
of water over a slow fire — adding pepper and salt. 
Skim occasionally, and after two hours add two table- 
spoons of sherry; then strain through fine soup- 
strainer or cheese-cloth. This is the basis of all the 
following soups, except when otherwise stated. 

To make this stock richer, add a turkey leg to above 
receipt; boil one and a half hours, then add one-half a 
pound of finely chopped beef. Cook for half an hour 
longer, then strain. 

To make meat jelly, add a little gelatine to the soup 
stock five minutes before straining. 
3 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

To give a good dark color to the stock, add a few 
drops of "caramel," which is prepared in the following 
manner: 

Put three tablespoons of granulated sugar into a 
saucepan with a little water, and until the sugar has 
become dark and reddish ; then add a little more water 
and boil again until the sugar is melted. Strain and 
pour into a bottle when the caramel will keep per- 
fectly for several weeks. 

Chicken Broth 

(Brodo di Capone) 

This is made like the meat stock, substituting a 
fowl in place of the beef and bones. 

Rice Soup 

{Minestra di Riso) 
Meat stock 2 tablespoons of rice 

Cover the rice with water and boil for ten minutes; 
then drain and add to the stock (after it has been 
strained), and boil for five or ten minutes more. 

Stracciatella Soup 

{Minestra di Stracciatella) 

1 egg 1 tablespoon bread 

}4 tablespoon of Par- crumbs 

mesan cheese 

Beat the egg, yolk and white together; add salt and 
the cheese, grated, and the bread crumbs; mix well 
together and add to the boiling stock (strained). Stir 
well with a fork to prevent the egg from setting, and 
boil for four or five minutes. 
4 



SOUPS 



Vegetable Chowder 

(Minestrone alia Milanese) 
y 2 quart of stock I cup of rice 

2 slices of lean pork, 2 tablespoons of dried 

or a ham bone beans 

2 tomatoes, fresh or 1 tablespoon of peas, 
canned fresh or canned 

2 onions 

Put into the stock the slices of pork, cut into small 
pieces; or, if desired, a ham bone may be substituted 
for the pork. Add the tomatoes, cut into small pieces 
also, the onions, in small pieces, and the rice. Boil all 
together until the rice is cooked. Then add the beans 
and the peas and cook a little longer. The soup is 
ready when it is thick. If desired, this chowder can 
be made with fish broth instead of the stock, and with 
the addition of shrimps which have been taken from 
their shells. 

This dish can be served hot or cold. 

Fish Broth 

(Brodo di Pesce) 

1 liberal pound of 1 quart of water 

fresh codfish, or 1 onion 

any other lean fish Parsley 

for boiling Salt and pepper 

Boil until fish is thoroughly cooked; strain and 
serve. 

Codfish Soup 

{Zuppa di Merluzzo) 
Take one-half pound of salt codfish that has been 
soaked, cut it up into squares, but not small. 

Prepare in a saucepan four tablespoons of good olive- 
2 5 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

oil, and one small onion cut into pieces. Cook the onion 
in the oil over a slow fire, without allowing the onion 
to become colored, then add a small bunch of parsley- 
stems, a small piece of celery, a bay-leaf, and a small 
sprig of thyme. Cool for a few moments, then add 
two tomatoes, skinned and with the seeds removed, 
and cut into slices, two tablespoons of dry white wine, 
and one medium-sized potato, peeled and cut into 
slices, and, lastly, one cup of water. 

When the potato is half cooked, add the codfish, 
then one-half tablespoon more of olive-oil. Re- 
move the parsley stems, and put in instead one-half 
tablespoon of chopped-up parsley; add a good pinch 
of pepper, and some salt, if needed. When the vege- 
tables are thoroughly cooked pour the soup over 
pieces of toasted or fried bread, and serve. 

Lentil Soup 

(Brodo di Lenticchie) 

3 tablespoons of dried }4 tablespoon of butter 
lentils 2 tablespoons of cream 

Meat stock 

Cover the lentils with water and boil until they are 
quite soft. Pass them through a colander or a sieve. 
Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the lentils and 
cream, mixing well, then add a ladleful of the stock, 
and boil for a few minutes; then add the rest of the 
desired amount of stock, a ladleful at a time. 

Vegetable Soup 

(Zuppa alia Primaverile) 

Take some cabbage, carrots, celery, onions, turnips, 

lettuce, squash, potatoes, beans, and peas. Chop each 

into very small pieces, wash and drain. Take a sauce- 

6 



SOUPS 



pan, put in a heaping tablespoon of butter; chop up 
another small piece of onion and add to butter and fry 
until onion is golden; then add all the vegetables, salt, 
and pepper, and cover the saucepan. When the 
vegetables are half cooked, and their juice has become 
absorbed, dissolve one tablespoon of tomato paste in 
one-third of a cup of hot water, and add. Instead of 
the tomato paste there may be added to the onion, 
before* putting in the vegetables, one tomato, peeled 
and cut into small pieces. When the tomato is 
cooked add the vegetables. Then add water, a little 
at a time, until you have sufficient quantity for two 
persons. Take a slice of bread and cut into small 
squares or diamonds — toast or fry as desired — put 
these into the soup plates, and pour the soup (with- 
out straining) over them. 

Lettuce Soup 

{Zuppa di Lattuga) 
i small lettuce 2 tablespoons of peas, 

Meat stock fresh or canned 

2 potatoes 1 heaping tablespoon 

The leaves of a head of flour 

of celery 

Put the potatoes, cold boiled, into the stock when it 
boils, add the celery leaves, the lettuce chopped up, the 
peas, and the flour mixed well with a little cold stock 
or water. Boil for one hour and a half, and serve 
with little squares of fried bread. 

Pumpkin Soup 

(Zuppa di Zucca) 

1 slice of pumpkin }i cup of water 

2 tablespoons of butter i}i cups of milk 

1 tablespoon of sugar 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Peel the pumpkin and remove the seeds, cut into 
small pieces, and put into a saucepan with the butter, 
the sugar, a pinch of salt, and the water. Boil for two 
hours, then drain and put back into the saucepan 
with the milk, which has been boiled. Allow it to 
come to a boil, and then serve it with squares of fried 
bread. 

Potato Soup 

(Zuppa alia Provinciate) 

2 large potatoes 2 tablespoons of butter 

3 tablespoons of cream 2 yolks of eggs 

or milk Soup stock 

Boil the potatoes, then rub them through a sieve. 
Put them into a saucepan with the butter, a little 
salt, and the cream or milk. Simmer until it is thick, 
then add the yolks of the two eggs to form it into a 
paste. Turn out onto the bread-board, cut into small 
dice, and throw them into the stock, which must be 
boiling. If desired, before serving sprinkle a little 
Parmesan cheese into the soup. 



MACARONI AND OTHER PASTES 

Macaroni with Tomato Sauce 

(Maccheroni al Sugo) 
2 quarts of water y$ pound of macaroni 

Boil the water until it makes big bubbles. Add 
salt, then break the macaroni and put it in. Cover 
the saucepan and boil for fifteen minutes. The sauce- 
pan should not be too small, otherwise the macaroni 
will stick to the bottom. 

Prepare the sauce as follows: 

Take a good slice of ham fat, and chop very fine 
with it a piece of onion, a piece of celery, and some 
parsley. Then put this into a frying-pan and cook 
until the grease is colored. (If desired, add a small 
lump of butter.) When well colored add two table- 
spoons of tomato paste dissolved in a little hot water. 
Boil all together for fifteen minutes. 

Drain the macaroni, and put it into the frying- 
pan with the sauce, mix well with fork and spoon over 
the fire, so that the macaroni will be thoroughly sea- 
soned, then add three tablespoons of grated Parmesan 
cheese, mix again, and serve. 

If no tomato paste is available make the tomato 
sauce as follows: 

Chop up fine one-quarter of an onion, a piece of 
celery the length of a finger, two or three basil-leaves, 
9 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

and a small bunch of parsley. Slice seven or eight 
tomatoes (fresh or canned), add salt and pepper, and 
put all on together to cook in four tablespoons of good 
olive-oil. Stir occasionally, and when it becomes «,s 
thick as cream, strain, and add the macaroni as before 
directed. 

Macaroni with Meat and Sauce 

(Maccheroni al ~$ugo di Came) 

Take one-half pound of beef without fat. Prepare 
the ham fat as in the preceding receipt, chopped up 
with onion, celery, and parsley. Cut the meat into 
several pieces, put it with the fat, etc., into a frying- 
pan. Add salt and pepper. Cook until the meat is 
colored, then add two tablespoons of wine, white or 
red. When the wine is absorbed add two tablespoons 
of tomato paste dissolved in hot water. (Or tomato 
sauce as in preceding.) Boil all together for five 
minutes, with cover on the saucepan, then add one 
cup of boiling water, and allow it to simmer until the 
meat is thoroughly cooked — about one-half an hour. 
Boil and strain the macaroni as before, and pour over 
it the sauce from the meat. Mix well, and serve with 
the meat in the middle and the macaroni around it, 
with cheese (grated Parmesan) sprinkled over it. 

This dish can be made with veal or mutton instead 
of the beef. 

Macaroni with Butter and Cheese 

(Maccheroni al Burro) 

Boil and drain the macaroni. Take four table- 
spoons of table-butter, three tablespoons of grated 
Parmesan cheese, add to the macaroni in the sauce- 
pan, mix well over the fire, and serve. 
10 



MACARONI AND OTHER PASTES 

Sicilian Macaroni with Eggplant 

Slice one eggplant and put it under a weighted plate 
to extract the bitter juices. Then fry the slices deli- 
cately in lard. Make a ragout of chickens' hearts 
and livers as follows: Put two tablespoons of butter 
into a saucepan, fry the hearts and livers, and when 
cooked add two tablespoons of tomato paste, thinned 
with hot water (or a corresponding amount of tomato 
sauce). Cook for fifteen minutes. 

Prepare three-quarters of a pound of macaroni, 
boiled • and drained, then put it into the saucepan 
with the hearts and livers, add the eggplant and three 
tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese. Mix well 
together and serve. 

Vermicelli with Olive-oil and Anchovies 

Take one-half pound of vermicelli, boil in salted 
water and drain. While boiling put into a saucepan 
three anchovies, cut up fine, with four tablespoons of 
olive-oil. Fry the anchovies in the oil, then put the 
vermicelli into the saucepan, mix well for a few mo- 
ments on the fire, then serve. 

Vermicelli with Olive-oil, Olives, Capers, 
and Anchovies 

Take one-half pound of vermicelli and cover it well 
"with salted water. Cook for about ten minutes. 
While it is boiling put into a saucepan four table- 
spoons of olive-oil, three anchovies cut up fine with six 
olives (ripe ones preferable) and one-half tablespoon 
of capers. When these are fried add the vermicelli 
(well drained), mix well, and put the saucepan at the 
back of the stove. Turn the vermicelli over with a 
fork every few minutes until it is thoroughly cooked. 
II 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Vermicelli with Fish 

Boil one-half pound of vermicelli in salted water, 
drain, and mix with two tablespoons of olive-oil and 
a little chopped-up parsley. Then set to one side 
to get cool. 

Take five smelts, split them, take out the bones, and 
fry them slightly in one teaspoon of olive-oil. 

Butter a pan and sprinkle it with bread crumbs. 
Then put into it one-half of the cold vermicelli. Pour 
over this some thick tomato sauce (one tablespoon of 
tomato paste cooked in two tablespoons of olive-oil). 
Then put in the smelts cut in two, some anchovy, a 
few capers, and three or four ripe olives chopped up 
with one mushroom. Then add the rest of the tomato 
sauce, then the other half of the vermicelli, and on 
top a layer of bread crumbs. Season all well with salt 
and pepper. Put the pan into a moderate oven, and 
cook about an hour and a quarter, adding a little 
olive-oil when necessary, so that it will not dry up 
too much. 

Any fish may be used instead of the smelts, cutting 
it into thin strips. 

Spaghetti with Tunny-fish 

While one-half pound of spaghetti is boiling in 
salted water prepare the following: Take two ounces 
of tunny-fish and cut them into small pieces. Put 
them into a saucepan and fry them in their own oil. 
This oil is generally sufficient, but should it not be, 
add another tablespoon of olive-oil. When the tunny 
have been fried add a teaspoonful of chopped parsley 
and four tomatoes, peeled and the seeds removed, and 
a pinch of pepper. Let the tomatoes cook thoroughly. 
When they are cooked put the spaghetti into the 



MACARONI AND OTHER PASTES 



saucepan and move them about with a fork and spoon 
until they are thoroughly mixed with the sauce and the 
tunny. Then serve. 

Timbale of Vermicelli with Tomatoes 

(Neapolitan Receipt) 
Take ten medium-sized fresh tomatoes and cut them 
in two^ crosswise. Put a layer of these into a baking- 
dish with the liquid side touching the bottom of the 
dish. Now put, another layer with the liquid side up, 
sprinkle on salt and pepper. Break the raw vermi- 
celli the length of the baking-dish and put a layer of 
it on top of the tomatoes. Now add another layer of 
the tomatoes, with the skin side touching the vermi- 
celli, a second layer with the liquid side up, salt and 
pepper, and another layer of the raw vermicelli, and 
so on, the top layer being of tomatoes with their liquid 
side touching the vermicelli. Heat three or four 
tablespoons of good lard (or butter), and when the lard 
boils pour it over the tomatoes and vermicelli; then 
put the dish into the oven and cook until the vermi- 
celli is thoroughly done. After cooling a little while, 
turn it out into a platter. 

Macaroni "alia San Giovannello " 

While three-quarters of a pound of macaroni are 
boiling in salted water prepare the following: Chop 
up fine two ounces of ham fat with a little parsley. 
Peel six medium-sized tomatoes, cut them open, remove 
the seeds, and any hard or unripe parts, and put them 
on one side. Take a frying-pan and put into it one 
scant tablespoon of butter and the chopped ham fat. 
When the grease is colored put in the sliced tomatoes 
with salt and pepper. When the tomatoes are cooked 
13 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

and begin to sputter put the macaroni into the pan 
with them, mix well, add grated Parmesan cheese, 
and serve. 

Ribbon Macaroni 

(Pasta fatta in Casa. Fettuccini) 

2}4 cups of flour 3 tablespoons of cold 

2 eggs water 

}4 teaspoon of salt 

Put the flour on a bread-board. Make a hole in the 
middle of it, and break the eggs into it. Add the 
water and the salt, and mix all together with a fork 
until the flour is all absorbed and you have a paste 
which you can roll out. Then take a rolling-pin and 
roll it out very thin, about the thickness of a ten-cent 
piece. Leave it spread out like this until it has dried 
a little. Then double it over a number of times, 
always lengthwise, and cut it across in strips about 
one-half inch wide. Boil two quarts of salted water, and 
put the ribbons into it, and cook for ten minutes, then 
drain. Serve with the meat and sauce as in receipt 
for Macaroni with Meat and Sauce, or with the to- 
mato sauce and cheese only, as desired. 

Ravioli with Meat 

Prepare the paste as in the preceding receipt. 

Take whatever meat is desired — chicken, turkey, or 
veal — this must always be cooked. (Left-over meat 
may be utilized this way.) Chop the meat very fine, 
add one tablespoon of grated Parmesan cheese, one egg, sl 
dash of nutmeg, a dash of grated lemon-peel, one table- 
spoon of butter, cold. Mix these ingredients in a bowl. 
Take a teaspoon of the mixture and put it into the 
extended paste, about two inches from the edge. 
14 



MACARONI AND OTHER PASTES 

Take another spoonful and put it about two inches 
away from the first spoonful. Continue to do this 
until you have a row of teaspoonfuls across the paste. 
Then fold over the edge of the paste so as to cover the 
spoonfuls of mixture, and cut across the paste at the 
bottom of them. Then cut into squares with the meat 
in the middle of each square; press down the paste a 
little at the edges so the meat cannot fall out. Continue 
to do this until all the meat and the paste are used up. 

Put the little squares of paste and meat into the 
boiling salted water a few at a time, and boil for ten 
minutes. Serve with tomato sauce, or butter and 
grated Parmesan cheese. 

Ravioli with Brains 

Take one lamb's brains and parboil in slightly salted 
water for five minutes. Put into a bowl with a small 
quantity of curds, one egg, salt and pepper, dash of 
nutmeg, and a little grated Parmesan cheese, and 
mix all together. Then put by teaspoonfuls on the 
paste as in preceding receipt. Cook for ten minutes 
in boiling salted water, and serve with tomato sauce. 

Ravioli of Curds and Spinach 

i small bunch of yi pound of curds 
spinach 

Cook the spinach, drain, and chop up fine, add the 
curds, one egg, salt and pepper, dash of nutmeg, and 
a little grated cheese. Add to the paste, and boil as 
before. 

Sweet Ravioli 

(Ravioli Dolce) 
These ravioli can be used also as a dessert by pre- 
paring them as follows: 

15 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Take yi pound of flour i tablespoon of butter 
2 tablespoons of lard 

Work this into a paste and roll out thin. 

Take one-half pound of curds, add one egg, and the 
yolk of a second egg, two tablespoons of granulated 
sugar, a few drops of extract of vanilla. Mix well to- 
gether and add to the paste as before. Then fry in 
lard until a golden brown. Serve with powdered 

sugar. 

Timbale of Macaroni 

Take a small piece of ham fat, one-half of onion, 
piece of celery, parsley, small piece of carrot. Chop 
up fine together. Put into a saucepan, and when 
the vegetables are fried add two or three mushrooms 
which have been chopped fine; after five minutes add 
two tablespoons of tomato paste, thinned with five 
tablespoons of hot water (or equal quantity of tomato 
sauce without water). When the sauce is cooked 
take out the mushrooms and put them on one side. 

Take one-half pound of macaroni. Boil in salted 
water for fifteen minutes, drain, and add the sauce 
described above. Add two tablespoons Parmesan 
cheese, grated, and one tablespoon of butter. 

Butter well a mold, then cover with a thin layer 
of bread crumbs the bottom and sides. Pour into the 
mold one-half the macaroni, then place on it a layer 
of mushrooms which you have taken out of the sauce. 
Now add the other half of the macaroni, and then an- 
other thin layer of bread crumbs. Put the mold into 
the oven without turning it over, and bake in a slow 
oven until well browned. Then turn out and serve. 

To this timbale, if desired for variety, cold meat of 
any kind cut up fine may be added to the sauce; and 
16 



MACARONI AND OTHER PASTES 

one egg, hard boiled, and cut into four pieces. Add 
the egg, and the pieces of meat which you have re- 
moved from the sauce, to the timbale at the same time 
that you add the mushrooms. 

Rice Timbale 

This timbale is made in the same way as the pre- 
ceding one, only substituting rice for macaroni. One- 
half cup of rice. 

Timbale of Ribbon Macaroni 

This is prepared as the two preceding ones, using 
Ribbon Macaroni instead of rice or ordinary maca- 
roni. 



RICE, ETC. 



Rice with Peas 

yi cup of rice 2 tablespoons of butter 

Grated Parmesan 1 small onion 
cheese 



Chop the onion up fine and put it into the 
saucepan with one-half the butter (one tablespoon). 
Cook until the onion is brown, then pour on the rice 
(raw) and fry until the rice is dry. Then add hot 
water, a ladleful at a time, taking care not to let the 
rice boil too hard, as it will then become hard in the 
middle and floury around the edges. When the rice 
is cooked, put the saucepan at the back of the stove, 
and add the rest of the butter. Before taking off the 
stove add a little grated Parmesan cheese and the peas, 
which have been prepared as follows: 

. Take a small piece of ham fat, one-half small onion, 
and some parsley. Chop together fine, add three table- 
spoons of olive-oil, salt and pepper, and put into a 
saucepan on the fire. When the onion is colored add 
one can of green peas (or fresh peas, according to sea- 
son). When the peas have absorbed all the olive-oil 
add a sufficient quantity of broth to cover them (or 
water) and cook until peas are soft. Then mix the 
peas with the rice, add one tablespoon of Parmesan 
cheese, and serve. 

18 



RICE, ETC. 



Rice "alia Roraana " 
{Risotto alia Romana) 

A small piece of ham i onion 

fat 2 mushrooms canned, 

i stalk of celery or i fresh mush- 

Parsley room 

i pound of lean beef 

Chop these ingredients together and put them into 
a large saucepan with a small piece of butter. Cook 
until the meat is well browned. Then add one table- 
spoon of red or white wine. Cook for a few minutes, 
then add one tablespoon of tomato paste dissolved in 
a little hot water, or two and one-half tablespoons of 
the other tomato sauce. Cook well, adding from time 
to time a little water — one-half cup in all. Wash the 
rice (a little less than a cupful), add it to the other 
ingredients in the saucepan, and cook for about 
twenty minutes, until the rice is soft, adding more 
water from time to time. Then add two tablespoons 
of grated Parmesan cheese, mix well, and serve, with 
more cheese if desired. 

Risotto "alia Nostrale" 

Take a small piece of onion, slice into small bits, 
and put into a saucepan with two tablespoons of but- 
ter. Cook until onion is browned. 

Wash well one-half cup of rice. Put it into the 
saucepan with the onion, add salt and pepper, and 
fry until the rice is dry. Then take one and one-half 
tablespoons of tomato paste, thinned with hot water 
(or two tablespoons of other tomato sauce), and add 
to the rice. Little by little add hot water until the 
rice is cooked through (about one cup of hot water). 
19 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Then add grated cheese, Parmesan or Gruyere, one and 
one-half tablespoons of butter, and mix well over the 
fire, then serve. 

This rice can be served alone or with fried sausages, 
or with cold chicken, or any left-over meat prepared 
in the following manner: 

Take one and one-half tablespoons of butter in a 
saucepan. Cut the cold meat into slices, and add 
them to the butter. Fry well, then take one and one- 
half tablespoons of tomato paste, thinned in water (or 
three tablespoons tomato sauce). Add to the meat a 
little at a time. Simmer for one-half hour, then 
put into the middle of hot platter, surrounded by rice, 
and pour this sauce over all. Add a handful of grated 
Parmesan cheese to the rice. 

This preparation of meat can be served with maca- 
roni or corn-meal instead of the rice. 

Rice with Butter and Cheese 

{Riso in Bianco) 

Take one-half cup of rice. Boil in salted water. 
After twenty minutes of boiling take off the fire and 
drain. Then put the rice back into a saucepan with 
three tablespoons of grated cheese (Parmesan) and 
three tablespoons of butter. Mix well and serve as 
an entree, or around a plate of meat. 

Rice with Tomatoes 

Boil a cup of rice soft in hot water. Shake it 
now and then, but do not stir it. Drain it, add a 
little milk in which a beaten egg has been mixed, one 
teaspoon of butter, and a little pepper and salt. 
Simmer for five minutes, and if the rice has not ab- 
20 



RICE, ETC 



sorbed all the milk, drain it again. Put the rice 
around a dish, smooth it into a wall, wash it over 
with the yolk of a beaten egg, and put it into the 
oven until firm. Take the strained juice and pulp of 
seven or eight tomatoes, season with pepper, a little 
salt and sugar, and one-half of a chopped-up onion; stew 
for twenty minutes, then stir in one tablespoon of 
butter and two tablespoons of fine bread crumbs. 
Stew three or four minutes to thicken, and then pour 
the tomatoes into the dish, in the middle of the rice, 
and serve. 

Rice with Tomatoes " air Indiana " 

Wash a cup of rice and boil it. Take seven or 
eight good-sized tomatoes, boil and strain them, and 
season with salt and a little allspice. Take a baking- 
dish and put into it alternate layers of tomato and 
rice, finishing off with a layer of tomato, covered up 
with grated bread crumbs moistened with melted 
butter. Bake in a moderate oven for a good half- 
hour. 

Risotto with Ham 

Cut into small pieces one ounce of raw ham, fat and 
lean. Chop up fine a small piece of onion, and put 
it with the ham into a frying-pan with one-half a table- 
spoon of butter. Fry slowly until the ham and onions 
are golden. Then add one-half cup of uncooked rice; 
when it has cooked for a few minutes, add twice its 
height of bouillon (or water), salt and pepper, a dash 
of nutmeg, and mix well and allow it to boil for 
twenty minutes over a good fire. Then take off 
the stove, add two tablespoons of butter and two 
tablespoons of Parmesan cheese grated; mix well and 
serve. 

3 21 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Rice with Mushrooms 

10 mushrooms if can- $4 of a cup of rice 
ned, or 5 or 6 if 
fresh ones 

Chop up a little onion, parsley, celery, and carrot 
together, and put them on the fire with two table- 
spoons of good olive-oil. When this sauce is colored, 
add two tablespoons of tomato paste, thinned with 
hot water (or a corresponding quantity of tomato 
sauce). Season with salt and pepper. Cut the mush- 
rooms into small pieces, and add them to the sauce. 
Cook for twenty minutes over a medium fire. Put 
on one side and prepare the rice as follows: 

Fry the rice with a lump of butter until dry; then 
add hot water, a little at a time, and boil gently. When 
the rice is half cooked (after about ten minutes) add 
the mushrooms and sauce, and cook for another ten 
minutes. Add grated Parmesan cheese before serving. 

Polenta 

{Indian Meal) 

34 of a cup of yellow 3 cups of water 
Indian meal (fine) 

Put the water into a granite or iron saucepan, add 
salt. When it begins to boil add the Indian meal, 
little by little. Keep stirring constantly as you pour 
it in, to prevent lumps. Boil for one-half hour, stirring 
constantly over a moderate fire. If desired, a little 
more water may be added if preferred not so thick. 
Add grated cheese and butter. 

Polenta Fritters 

Put one pinch of salt and one tablespoon of sugar 
into a cup of milk, and put it on to boil. As soon as 
22 



RICE, ETC. 



it boils pour in, little by little, one-half scant 
cup of fine Indian meal, stirring constantly with a 
wooden spoon. Allow it to boil gently for twenty 
minutes. 

Take it off the stove, add one level tablespoon of 
butter and the yolk of one egg and a little grated 
lemon-peel. Beat up well to mix the egg and butter. 
Then turn the mixture onto the bread-board, which 
has been dampened; spread it out to the thickness of 
a finger. Allow it to cool, then cut into squares or 
diamonds or little rounds, dip these into egg and then 
into the bread crumbs, and fry them in boiling lard, a 
few at a time. Sprinkle with sugar, and serve hot. 

Polenta "alia Toscana " 

2 cups of Indian meal 3 pints of cold water 

Put the water on, and when it boils add salt. Then 
add the Indian meal, little by little, stirring all the 
time. Allow it to boil over a moderate fire for one- 
half hour, stirring constantly. When the meal has be- 
come quite stiff, take a wooden spoon and dip it into 
hot water, and with it detach the Indian meal from 
the side of the saucepan, then hold the saucepan for 
a moment over the hottest part of the fire, until the 
Indian meal has become detached from the bottom. 
Then turn it out onto the bread -board; it should come 
out whole in a mold. Let it stand a few moments to 
cool. Then with a wire cut it into slices about the 
thickness of a finger. Place these slices on a hot 
platter in a layer; pour over them a good meat gravy 
and grated cheese; then put on another layer of the 
polenta, and add more gravy and cheese, and so on, 
until your polenta is used up. 
23 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Polenta with Chopped Sausages 

Prepare the Indian meal as in the preceding receipt. 

Take four Deerfoot sausages (or two, if a larger 
variety of sausage), remove the skins, chop fine, then 
fry in butter. When they are a nice brown add one 
tablespoon of stock, and two tablespoons of tomato 
paste thinned with hot water (or a corresponding 
amount of the tomato sauce). 

Cook for fifteen minutes more. Then cut the po- 
lenta in slices as in preceding receipt and add the 
chopped sausages with their sauce and grated cheese, 
in layers as before. 

Chicken with Polenta 

Take a small chicken; clean and prepare it. Take 
a slice of ham fat four fingers wide and one finger 
long (or one tablespoon of good lard). Chop up very 
fine with a chopping knife, and put into a good-sized 
saucepan. Take one-half an onion, a small carrot, 
a piece of celery, and cut all into very small pieces and 
add them all to the fat. Then put in the chicken, the 
salt, pepper, and a pinch of allspice, and cover the 
saucepan. Cook until the chicken is covered, bast- 
ing with the grease, and turning the chicken until it 
is brown on all sides; then add one-third of a glass of 
red or white wine. When the wine has become ab- 
sorbed, add one tablespoon of the tomato paste, dis- 
solved in a cup of hot water (or a cup of tomato 
sauce not too thick). Cook for a few moments more — 
until the chicken is thoroughly cooked. 

Prepare the Indian meal as in receipt for Indian 
meal, and serve the chicken surrounded by the Indian 
meal, with the sauce poured over all and grated 
cheese sprinkled over the Indian meal. 
24 



RICE, ETC. 



Pigeon may be prepared in the same way as the 
chicken and served with the Indian meal; or either 
one may be served instead of the Indian meal with 
rice, as in receipt for Risotto alia Nostrale; Macaroni, 
as in receipt for Macaroni with Butter, or Ribbon 
Macaroni, as in receipt given. 

Polenta Pasticciata 

% of a cup of Indian i quart of milk 
meal 

Boil the milk, and add the Indian meal, a little at 
a time, when milk is boiling, stirring constantly. Cook 
for one-half an hour, stirring constantly. Add salt just 
before taking off the fire. The Indian meal should be 
stiff when finished. Turn it onto the bread-board, 
and spread it out to the thickness of two fingers! 
While it is cooking prepare a meat sauce, and a Be- 
chamel sauce as follows: 

MEAT SAUCE 

Take a small piece of beef, a small piece of ham, fat 
and lean, one tablespoon of butter, a small piece of 
onion, a small piece of carrot, a small piece of celery, a 
pinch of flour, one-half cup of bouillon (or same amount 
of water), pepper. Cut the meat into small dice; chop 
up fine together the ham, onion, carrot, and celery. 
Put these all together with some pepper into a sauce- 
pan with the butter, and when the meat is brown, add 
the pinch of flour, and the bouillon a little at a time (or 
the water), and cook for about one-half an hour. This 
sauce should not be strained. 

BECHAMEL SAUCE 

Take one tablespoon of flour, and one tablespoon of 
butter. Put them into a saucepan and stir with a 
25 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

wooden spoon until they have become a golden-brown 
color. Then add, a little at a time, one pint of milk; 
stir constantly until the sauce is as thick as custard, 
and is white in color. If it grows too thick, a little 
more milk may be added; or if it is too thin, a tiny 
lump of butter rolled in flour will thicken it. 

Now take the cold Indian meal and cut it into 
squares about two inches across. Take a baking-dish 
of medium depth, butter well, then put in a layer of 
squares of Indian meal close together, to entirely cover 
the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle over it grated cheese; 
then pour on the top enough meat sauce to cover the 
layer (about two tablespoons), then on the top of this 
add a layer of Bechamel sauce. Then put another 
layer of the squares of Indian meal, sprinkle with 
grated cheese as before, add meat sauce, then Bechamel 
sauce, and continue in this way until the baking-dish 
is full, having for the top layer the Bechamel sauce. 
Put the dish into a moderate oven, and bake until it 
is a golden brown on top. 

Polenta Cake 

(Migliaccio di Farina Gialla) 

2 cups of coarse Indian yi teaspoon of salt 

meal 3 teaspoons of sugar 

% cup of raisins (granulated) 

3 tablespoons of lard 

Mix the salt, sugar, and raisins with the Indian 
meal in a bowl, then pour in boiling water, a little at 
a time, and stir well with a wooden spoon until 
you have a stiff paste and no dry meal remains stick- 
ing to the bottom of the bowl. 

Then take a cake-tin and grease it well with one- 
26 



RICE, ETC. 



half of the lard. Then turn out the Indian meal into 
the pan, and even it out with the wooden spoon. 
Spread on the top of this the rest of the lard, softened 
slightly so as you can spread it easily. Cook in a slow 
oven until a golden brown. Serve hot. 

Gnocchi of Farina 

{Gnocchi di Semolina) 

i pint of milk }4 cup of farina 

i egg Butter and cheese 

Put the milk on, and when it boils add salt. Take 
a wooden spoon and, stirring constantly, add the 
farina little by little. Cook for ten minutes, stirring 
constantly. Take off the fire and break into the farina 
one egg; mix very quickly, so that the egg will not 
have time to set. Spread the farina onto the bread- 
board about the height of a finger. Allow it to cool, 
then cut it into squares or diamonds about two or 
three inches across. Butter well a baking-dish, and 
put in the bottom a layer of the squares of farina; 
sprinkle over a little grated Parmesan cheese (or 
Gruyere), and put here and there a small dab of butter. 
Then put in another layer of the squares of farina; add 
cheese and butter as before. Continue in this way 
until your baking-dish is full, having on the top layer 
butter and cheese. 

Bake in a hot oven until a brown crust forms. Serve 
in the baking-dish. 

Gnocchi of Potato 

Take six medium-sized potatoes and put them on 
to boil in their skins. When they are done, peel them 
and pass them through a fine colander. Add a little 
27 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

salt. Take one cup of flour, and mix on the bread- 
board with the potatoes until they form a paste. 
Roll this paste with the hands into a sausage about 
the thickness of three fingers. Cut this roll across 
into pieces about an inch long. Press these pieces 
lightly with the finger or the handle of the knife, so 
they will take little cup-shaped forms. Leave these 
to one side, and put two quarts of salted water on to 
boil. When it boils add the gnocchi a few at a time, 
until all are in the water. When the gnocchi rise to 
the surface of the water, take them out with the 
skimmer. Put them into a platter a few at a time, 
adding each time gravy and cheese, and covering them 
well. Put a layer of grated cheese sprinkled on top. 
Serve with meat, or as a first course. 

Gnocchi of Milk — a Dessert 

I cup of milk 2 or 3 drops of vanilla 

I level tablespoon of extract 

powdered starch 2 yolks of eggs 
2 tablespoons of sugar 

Put all these ingredients together into a saucepan 
and mix together with a wooden spoon for a few mo- 
ments. Then put onto the back of the stove where 
it is not too hot, and cook until the mixture has be- 
come stiff. Cook a few moments longer, stirring 
always; then turn out onto a bread-board and spread 
to a thickness of a finger and a half. When cold, cut 
into diamonds or squares the width of two fingers. 
Butter a baking-dish, and put the squares into it over- 
lapping each other. Add a few dabs of butter here 
and there. Put another layer of the squares in the 
dish, more dabs of butter, and so on until the dish is 
full. Brown in the oven. 

28 



SAUCES 



Roux for Sauces 

Roux is necessary to thicken and give body to 
sauces. Put one tablespoon of flour and one of 
butter into a saucepan and cook until the flour has 
lost any raw taste. Then put the saucepan on the 
back of the stove and add slowly the stock or milk, 
one cup for every tablespoon of butter or flour, 
and stir until smooth. For white sauces take care the 
flour does not color; for dark sauces let it brown, but 
take care it does not burn. 

Agro Dolce Sauce 

Take two tablespoons of sugar (brown or white), 
one-half a cup of currants, a quarter of a bar of 
grated chocolate, one tablespoon of chopped candied 
orange, one of lemon-peel, one of capers, and one cup 
of vinegar. Mix well together and let soak for two 
hours; pour it over venison or veal, and simmer for ten 
minutes. 

Bechamel Sauce No. 1 

Put two ounces of butter and two tablespoons 
of flour into a saucepan and stir for five minutes. 
Pour one and one-half pints of boiling milk gradually 
in, beating well with a whisk. Add some nutmeg, a 
few peppercorns, a pinch of salt, and some chopped 
mushrooms. Cook for one-quarter of an hour, and rub 
through a fine sieve. 

29 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Bechamel Sauce No. 2 

Mix three tablespoons of butter and three of flour 
to a smooth paste, put some peppercorns, one-half an 
onion, one-half a carrot sliced, a small piece of mace, 
two teacups of white stock, a pinch of salt and of grated 
nutmeg, in a stew-pan; simmer for one-half an hour, 
stirring often, then add one teacup of cream; boil 
at once, and strain and serve. 

Tomato Sauce No. 1 

Take ten fresh tomatoes, remove the skins, cut them 
up; put them into a saucepan and boil them until 
soft. Then pass them through a sieve. Put their 
juice into a saucepan with one heaping tablespoon of 
butter or one-half tablespoon of good lard, salt and 
pepper, and boil again, adding water if the sauce be- 
comes too thick. This sauce can be kept in a bottle 
for several days. It can be used for macaroni, etc., 
in place of the tomato paste. 

Tomato Sauce No. 2 

Mince one-quarter of an onion, one-half a stalk of 
celery, a few leaves of sweet basil, and a bunch of pars- 
ley up fine. Add one-half cup of olive-oil, a pinch 
of salt and one of pepper, and cut eight or nine tomatoes 
into slices. Boil until the sauce is as thick as cream, 
stirring occasionally, then strain through a sieve and 
serve. 

Tomato Sauce No. 3 

Take four pounds of tomatoes, cut them in two, and 
put them into a two-quart saucepan with two wine- 
glasses of water, two saltspoons of salt, one of pep- 
per, cover the saucepan, and boil for forty minutes, 
stirring often to prevent burning; then strain. Make 
30 



SAUCES 



a roux in another saucepan with one ounce of butter 
and three-quarters of an ounce of flour. Cook for 
three minutes, mixing well. Take roux off the fire, 
and pour the tomatoes into it a little at a time, stirring 
to keep it smooth. Add two wineglasses of stock, 
put on the fire, and cook for twenty minutes, stirring 

all the time. 

Butter Sauce 

Take eight ounces of butter, one tablespoon of 
salt, one of pepper, and two tablespoons of lemon 
juice. Stir with a wooden spoon over the fire until 
the butter is half melted, then take it off and continue 
to stir until it is quite liquid. By taking the butter off 
the stove before it is all melted it will have a pleasant 
taste of fresh cream; this is all lost otherwise. 

Lombarda Sauce 

Put two tumblers of white roux and one of chicken 
jelly into a saucepan, reduce, and add three yolks of 
eggs mixed with two ounces of butter and the juice of 
one-half lemon. Before it boils take the saucepan off the 
fire, and add one tumbler of thick tomato sauce (see 
Sauces, page 30), strain, and just before serving add 
one tablespoon of sweet herbs minced fine. 

"Alia Panna" Sauce 

Melt one-half a pound of butter, add a little flour, 
salt, pepper, and grated nutmeg. Stir until thick, 
then add one pint of cream, a little chopped parsley, 
and heat for five minutes. 

Meat Sauce 

Put into a saucepan one pound of beef and one-half 
an onion chopped up with three ounces of lard, some 
3i 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

parsley, salt, pepper, one clove, and a very small 
slice of ham. Fry these over a hot fire for a few 
moments, moving them continually, and when the 
onion is browned add four tablespoons of red wine, 
and four tablespoons of tomato sauce (or tomato 
paste). When this sauce begins to sputter, add, little 
by little, some boiling water. Stick a fork into the 
meat from time to time to allow the juices to escape. 
Take a little of the sauce in a spoon, and when it looks 
a good golden color, and there is a sufficient quantity 
to cover the meat, put the covered saucepan at the 
back of the stove and allow it to simmer until the 
meat is thoroughly cooked. Then take out the meat, 
slice it, prepare macaroni, or any paste you desire, 
and serve it with the meat, and the sauce poured over 
all, and the addition of butter and grated cheese. 

Economical Sauce 

Take one-half of an old onion and chop it up fine. 
Take one small carrot, wash it, scrape it, and cut it 
into transverse slices; do the same with a stalk of 
celery, some parsley, and one fresh or canned mush- 
room. Then take a slice of ham (raw if possible), fat 
and lean, about four fingers wide and one finger high. 
Chop it up fine, and put it into a medium-sized sauce- 
pan with one tablespoon of butter. When the ham 
is colored, put in the chopped-up vegetables, one clove, 
salt, and pepper, and stir constantly, allowing the 
vegetables to cook thoroughly but not to burn, which 
will destroy the taste of the sauce. It should be a 
golden color. A little red wine may be added if you 
have it, but this is not necessary. Then add four 
fresh tomatoes, cut into several pieces, the skins re- 
moved, and the seeds taken out. Allow these to cook 
32 



SAUCES 



in the sauce until they sputter, then add a little water 
(or bouillon if you have it) , allow it to boil for a few mo- 
ments more, then take it off the fire and pass it through 
a sieve or fine colander, pressing hard so that all will 
pass through. If it is too thick after straining, add 
water or bouillon, and put it back and allow it to boil 
again a few moments. This sauce can be used for 
macaroni, gnocchi, left-over meat, egg, etc. The suc- 
cess of the sauce depends upon the proper frying 
of the onion in it. 

Hot Piquante Sauce 

Chop up fine two ounces of lean ham and a small 
piece of onion, add a little celery, the stalks of parsley, 
one clove, one-half tablespoon of pepper, and one- 
half bay -leaf . Pour over these ingredients a scant one- 
half cup of vinegar. Cover the saucepan and allow 
it to boil untiL it has consumed one-half. Put into an- 
other saucepan one-half cup of bouillon (or water in 
which you have dissolved one tablespoon of extract of 
beef). Allow it to boil, and then thicken with a teaspoon 
of potato flour which has been diluted in a little cold 
water. Drop this, little by little, into the saucepan 
until you have gained the required thickness for the 
sauce. Then pour in the boiled vinegar, passing it 
through cheese-cloth. Mix well together and add a 
teaspoon of French mustard, some capers, and some 
chopped-up pickles. Serve hot with meats or tongue. 
The pepper should predominate in this sauce. 

Piquante Sauce with Egg 

Take some anchovy paste — one tablespoon, two 
tablespoons of chopped parsley, some capers and 
chopped pickles, one teaspoon of French mustard, 
33 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

and the yolks of two hard-boiled eggs. Work this all 
together into a paste, then add three tablespoons of 
olive-oil and two or three of vinegar and a pinch of 
salt and pepper. This sauce is good with both meat 
and fish. 



EGGS 



Eggs with Peas 

Take one and one-half cups of green peas, and cook 
them with one and one-half tablespoons of good butter, 
and a pinch of salt. Take four hard-boiled eggs, cut 
them in two lengthwise, and put them on a platter; 
pour over them the peas as a sauce. 

Eggs "alia Milanese" 

Hard boil four eggs, cut them in four pieces each, 
put them in a platter, and pour over them the follow- 
ing sauce: 

CREAM OF LEMON SAUCE 

Take one cup of cold water, and pour one-half of 
it in a bowl with one tablespoon of starch, stir well 
until starch is dissolved. Pour the other one-half 
onto one heaping tablespoon of powered sugar and 
boil for a few moments — until sugar is thoroughly dis- 
solved. Allow it to cool, and then add the starch, 
and one cup of milk, a pinch of salt, a little grated 
lemon-rind, and two yolks of eggs. Mix all thoroughly, 
then strain through a sieve, then put on the stove again, 
and over a moderate fire, stir it constantly, always in 
the same direction, until it has assumed the thickness you 
desire. 

Eggs "alia Sciarmante" 

Hard boil four eggs; cut into several pieces. Then 
prepare the following: 

35 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Boil down to a syrup one heaping tablespoon of 
sugar, rind of one-quarter of lemon, one scant cup of 
water, and a little piece of cinnamon. Then remove 
the lemon-rind and the cinnamon, and add one cup of 
milk or cream. When heated through, take off of 
fire, and add the yolks of four eggs, beating well to- 
gether. Then pour the"", sauce over the hard-boiled 
eggs in a shallow baking-dish, put it in a very moderate 
oven, and bake. Before serving squeeze on a little 
lemon juice and garnish with squares of fried bread. 

Eggs with Piquante Sauce 

Chop up fine one pickled pepper, one teaspoon of 
capers, one-half small pickled onion and one pickle, and 
some parsley. Dissolve in boiling water one tablespoon 
of butter, add the juice of one-half of lemon, a pinch of 
flour to give a little body, and the chopped pickles. 
If too sour add some sugar. 

Hard boil four eggs, cut them in four, and pour 
over them the sauce. 

Eggs "alia Monachile" 

Hard boil four eggs, divide them in half, and pour 
over them the following sauce: Put two tablespoons 
of vinegar into a saucepan and one tablespoon of 
sugar (brown or white), fifteen almonds chopped up 
fine, and a small piece of candied citron. Let it boil 
for a little while, then add a pinch of cinnamon, cloves, 
pepper, and salt, and if too acid add a little water. 

Before taking off the stove add a little flour to give 
body to the sauce. Pour over the eggs and serve. 

Eggs "alia Fiorentina" 

Hard boil four eggs. Let them cool in a bowl of 
cold water. Peel them and divide them in half. Take 

36 



EGGS 



the yolks and mix with them one heaping tablespoon of 
butter, one tablespoon of Parmesan cheese grated, 
and a little salt and pepper. Put this mixture into a 
saucepan with the yolks of two raw eggs, and one- 
half of the white of one egg. Stir well until the mix- 
ture becomes* thick. Then fill the hard-boiled whites 
of the eggs with the stuffing; if any stuffing remains 
over, spread it on the platter under the eggs. Then 
put one-half cup of milk in a saucepan with one-half 
tablespoon of butter and one-half tablespoon of flour, 
salt, and pepper. Boil for a few moments, stirring 
well, then pour over the eggs, sprinkle well with 
grated Parmesan cheese, and put in the oven and brown. 

Lightning Omelette 

Butter a baking-dish and put in the bottom of it 
slices of stale bread (brown bread is better than white) 
which have been dipped in milk. Then put in a layer 
of very thin slices of Gruyere cheese. Take two eggs, 
beat them up to a froth, add salt and pepper, pour 
them into a baking-dish on top of the bread and cheese, 
then put it in the oven until it is browned on top. 
Serve hot. 

Eggs "alia Piacentina" 

Take the whites of four eggs, and beat until stiff. 
Then add the yolks and one rounded tablespoon of 
melted butter, and a little salt and pepper. Take a 
small baking-dish, butter it well, and put in the bot- 
tom a layer or two of very thin slices of cheese, Par- 
mesan or Gruyere. Put into the oven for a few moments 
until thoroughly heated, then pour on the whites of 
eggs mixed with the other ingredients, put back in 
the oven, and serve when the eggs are a golden 
brown. 

4 37 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Eggs "alia Benedettina " 

Roast two small peppers, take off their skins, re- 
move the seeds, and cut into strips. Take two to- 
matoes (not too ripe), boil them, remove the skins and 
seeds, and cut into thin strips also. Then wash two 
anchovies, remove the bones, and cut also into strips. 
Take a small baking-dish, put in the strips of peppers 
and tomatoes and the anchovies. Add two table- 
spoons of good olive-oil and put on the top of the 
stove until the ingredients boil. Then break into the 
dish four eggs, taking care to keep the yolks whole. 
Add salt and pepper, and put the dish into the oven 
until the eggs are cooked. 

Eggs "alia Romana" 

Beat four eggs, whites and yolks together. Add one 
tablespoon of milk or cream, salt and pepper, one 
tablespoon of grated Parmesan cheese, and a little 
chopped-up parsley. With this make three or four 
omelettes about the thickness of a ten-cent piece. As 
the omelettes are finished lay them on a napkin to cool; 
then cut them transversely into strips about one- 
quarter of an inch wide. Then put the strips into a 
saucepan with some heated butter. Heat them 
through thoroughly and serve with grated cheese and 
the following meat sauce poured over them: 

MEAT SAUCE 

Chop up some ham fat with a little onion, celery, 
carrot, and parsley. Add a small . piece of beef and 
cook until beef is well colored. Then add one and 
one-half tablespoons of red wine (or white), cook until 
wine is absorbed, then add one tablespoon of tomato 
paste diluted with water, or four fresh tomatoes, and 
boil fifteen minutes. 

33 



FISH 



Codfish " alia Giardiniera " 

Take one pound of salted codfish, boil it, remove the 
skin and bones, and shred it. Then take one good 
carrot, one-half a turnip, scrape them, cut them into 
slices, and boil them for a few moments. Then drain off 
the water, and put them into a saucepan with one and 
one-half tablespoons of butter and finish cooking them, 
adding from time to time a little boiling water. When 
the vegetables are cooked add the codfish, mix well, 
and serve. 

Codfish with Egg Sauce 

Take one pound of salt codfish. Boil it and remove 
the skin and bones. Then fry lightly in butter, adding 
chopped-up parsley, salt, and pepper. Stir about con- 
stantly, and add from time to time a little boiling 
water, until the fish is thoroughly cooked. Then beat 
up the yolks of two eggs and add them with a little 
flour, and cook for a few moments more. Squeeze on 
some lemon juice and serve. 

Codfish "alia Marinaia " 

Take one pound of salt codfish. Boil slightly until 
you can remove the skin and bones. Chop up fine 
a piece of onion, and parsley, and fry them in a sauce- 
pan with three tablespoons of best olive-oil, then put 
in the codfish with salt, pepper, and a pinch of allspice. 
39 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

While this is cooking, put into another saucepan three 
tablespoons of best vinegar, two tablespoons of fish 
broth, and one-half bay-leaf. Add a little flour to 
give body to the sauce, stir well, then remove the bay- 
leaf, and take the saucepan off the fire. Arrange the 
platter with pieces of fried bread in a layer on the 
bottom, then the codfish, and then the sauce poured over 
it. 

Fresh Codfish "al Vino Bianco" 

Remove the bones from three-quarters of a pound 
of fresh codfish. Cut into slices lengthwise. Butter 
a baking-dish, put in the fish, put more butter on top of 
it, salt and pepper, and one-half glass of dry white wine. 
Cook for twenty minutes in a hot oven, then place the 
fish on a platter, take the juice left over in the baking- 
dish, put it into a saucepan, add a little flour, some 
more butter, and the juice of half a lemon. Before 
taking off the fire, add some chopped-up parsley, and 
then pour the sauce over the fish, and serve. 

Codfish with Green Peppers 

Take one-half pound of salted codfish which has 
been soaked to remove the saltiness. Remove the 
skin and bones, and cut the codfish into small squares. 
Then dip it again into fresh water, and put the squares 
onto a napkin to dry. The fish may either be left as 
it is, or before proceeding, you may roll it in flour and 
fry it in lard or oil. 

Then take two good-sized green peppers, roast them 
on top of the stove, remove the skins and seeds, wash 
them, dry them, and cut them in narrow strips. When 
this is done put three generous tablespoons of olive-oil 
into a saucepan with one onion cut up small, and fry 
the onion over a slow fire. 
40 



FISH 

Take two big tomatoes, skin them, remove the 
seeds and hard parts, and cut them into small pieces. 
When the onion has taken a good color, add the to- 
matoes, and cook until they sputter, then add the pep- 
pers and a little salt and pepper. If the sauce is too 
thick add a little water. When the peppers are half 
cooked, add some chopped-up parsley and the codfish. 
Cover up the saucepan and let it simmer until the fish 
is cooked. 

This dish is also good cold. 



VEGETABLES 



Onions "alia Parmegiana" 

Take six onions. Take out the centers with an apple- 
corer and fill them up with the following stuffing: One 
tablespoon of grated Parmesan cheese mixed with two 
hard-boiled eggs and chopped parsley. Boil them first, 
then roll them in flour and fry them in olive-oil or 
butter. Then put them in a baking-dish with one-half 
tablespoon of grated Parmesan cheese and one tablespoon 
of melted butter. Put them in the oven and bake until 
golden. 

Onions "alia Veneziana" 

Take six small onions, remove the centers with an 
apple-corer. Boil them for a few moments, drain 
them, and stuff them with the following: Take a 
piece of bread, dip it in milk, squeeze out the milk, 
and mix the bread with one tablespoon of grated 
Parmesan cheese, the yolks of two hard-boiled eggs. 
Mix well together, then add some fine-chopped parsley, 
a pinch of sugar, salt and pepper, and the yolk of one 
raw egg; mix again well, and then stuff the onions with 
the mixture. Then dip them in flour and in egg, and 
fry them in lard. Put them on a platter and serve 
with a piquante sauce, made as follows: Chop up 
fine some pickles, capers, and pickled pepper, and add 
one-half cup of water. When these are cooked, add 
one tablespoon of butter and cook a little while longer, 
then pour over the onions and serve. 
42 



VEGETABLES 



Lima Beans with Ham 

Take three-quarters of a pound of lima beans, very 
tender young ones. Put them in boiling water for 
about five minutes to whiten them. Then put into 
a saucepan one heaping tablespoon of butter, some 
chopped parsley, and one small onion chopped up fine. 
When the onion is fried, add three ounces of raw ham, 
also chopped up. When the ham is fried put in the 
lima beans, and a little while before they are cooked 
add two or three tablespoons of stock. Serve with 
dice of fried bread. 

Fried Squash, Parsnips, Celery, and Mushrooms 

Take two small squash, the smallest size possible; 
cut off the two ends, divide them in two, and slice them 
in fine slices lengthwise. Put them in an earthen dish 
and sprinkle well with salt. Take one parsnip, scrape 
it, wash it, and boil it slightly, slice it, add it to the 
squash with more salt. Take the heart of celery, boil 
for a moment, and slice as with the other vegetables. 
Lastly, take some mushrooms, not very large ones, clean 
them, boil them a moment, and add them to the rest. 
Then dry all the vegetables with a clean towel, mix 
them all together, roll them thoroughly in flour, dip in 
egg, and fry in hot lard, dropping them in carelessly. 
Serve them in a hot dish with a napkin under them. 

Pumpkin "alia Parmegiana " 

Take a slice of pumpkin, remove the rind and the seeds, 
cut into square pieces, and then slice these into slivers 
about the thickness of a ten-cent piece. Boil these for 
a moment in salted water, drain and put them into a 
saucepan, and fry in butter, with a little salt and a 
pinch of allspice. Serve with grated Parmesan cheese 
43 



vSIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

and melted butter. Or, if preferred, when the pumpkin 
is fried, put it in a baking-dish, add thin slices of 
cheese (Parmesan or Gruyere), and put it into the 
oven until browned. 

Fried Pumpkin 

Take a slice of pumpkin, remove the rind and the 
seeds. Cut it into strips as for French fried potatoes, 
only finer. Roll in flour and dip in egg, and fry in 
boiling lard or olive-oil. 

If desired as garnishing for meat, cut the pumpkin 
exceedingly fine, roll in flour, but not in egg, and fry. 

Spinach "alia Romana" 

Clean and prepare the spinach. Put one pint of 
cold water with one tablespoon of salt on to boil, and 
when it boils put in the spinach. When the spinach is 
cooked — in about ten minutes — drain it in a colander, 
and turn onto it the cold water from the faucet for a 
few moments. Then squeeze out all the water with 
the hands. Put three tablespoons of olive-oil into a 
frying-pan; when this is thoroughly hot add the spinach, 
salt, and pepper. Cook for a few moments, stirring 
well with a fork and spoon, so the oil will permeate the 
spinach; then serve. Do not chop the spinach. 

Spinach Souffle 

Wash the spinach in several waters, put it in a cov- 
ered saucepan on a good fire. Stir now and then to 
prevent burning, and after fifteen minutes add one 
tablespoon of salt. Cook five minutes more; drain 
and squeeze out the water. Then chop up very 
fine. Put into a saucepan one generous tablespoon 
of butter, three-quarters tablespoon of flour, stir, and 
44 



VEGETABLES 



when they are half cooked, add the spinach and a little 
salt and pepper. Cook for five minutes, then pour in 
four or five tablespoons of cream, stirring constantly 
to prevent burning. Take a cup of spinach, pre- 
pared as above, beat up the yolk of one egg, mix it 
with the spinach, and stir over the fire until the egg 
is set; then let it cool, and before serving stir the well- 
beaten whites of three eggs lightly into it. Fill china 
cups or buttered papered forms half full, put them into 
a hot oven for ten or fifteen minutes, and serve at 
once. If too little baked or not served at once, the 
souffle will be spoiled. 

Spinach "in Riccioli " 

Boil the spinach and pass it through a fine colander. 
Beat up two eggs, add salt and pepper, and mix enough 
spinach into them to make them green.^ Put a little 
olive-oil into a frying-pan, and when it is thoroughly 
heated (but not boiling) , pour a little of the egg, turning 
the pan about so that the pancake should be as thin 
as a piece of paper and dry. Toss if necessary. Take 
it out; repeat with the rest of the egg. Then take the 
pancakes, place them one on top of the other, and 
cut them into pieces the width of a finger and about 
two inches long. Fry them in butter, and grate a lit- 
tle Parmesan cheese over them. They make a very 
nice garnish. 

Spinach in a Mold with Mushrooms 

Boil the spinach for a few moments, drain, squeeze 
out the water, then pound it well, and pass it through 
a fine colander. Put it into a saucepan with a lump 
of butter and a few drops of lemon juice. Let it boil 
for a few moments, then turn it into a dish and allow 
45 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

it to cool. When cold mix with it the beaten-up yolks 
of two eggs. Put them into a buttered mold, leaving 
an empty space in the middle. Bake in a slow oven 
for about an hour. When cooked turn it out onto a 
dish, and fill up the empty space with mushrooms, 
which you have prepared as follows: Wash and clean 
a sufficient quantity of mushrooms and put them into a 
saucepan with a good-sized lump of butter, a little 
flour, salt, and pepper. Cook over a brisk fire for ten 
minutes. Moisten well with chicken broth or stock, 
and add some roux made as follows: Put one table- 
spoon of flour and one of butter into a saucepan, 
and cook until the flour has lost all raw taste. Then 
add stock or milk as desired, slowly — one cup for 
every tablespoon of butter or flour — and stir until 
smooth. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon on the 
mushrooms, put them with their sauce into the spinach, 
and serve. 

Flan of Vegetables 

Wash, chop up fine, and boil several vegetables, a 
potato, some spinach, a carrot, and a small beet, etc., 
then boil them again in a saucepan with some stock; 
then add a half a cup of cream or milk, stir well 
together, take them off the stove, and let them cool. 
When cool add the yolks of two eggs, some grated 
cheese, and the whites of the eggs beaten up. Put 
the vegetables into a mold which has been well but- 
tered and lined with bread crumbs, and cook in the 
oven. 

Lettuce in the Oven 

Take several young lettuces, wash them and 
remove their wilted leaves, tie the tops together, 
and lay the lettuces side by side in a baking-pan 
and pour in one and one-half inches of stock. Cover 

4 6 



VEGETABLES 



the pan, and put it in a moderate oven for one-half an 
hour, adding stock when necessary. Place a fork 
under the middle of each lettuce, raise and drain, and 
lay them doubled up on a hot dish. Season the gravy 
in the pan with butter, salt, and pepper, thicken with 
one beaten egg, and pour it over the lettuce. Serve hot. 

Cucumbers "alia Toscana " 

Peel and blanch three or four cucumbers in boiling 
salted water for five minutes. Drain and cut them 
into pieces one inch thick and put them into a frying- 
pan with one ounce of butter, a little flour, and 
one-half pint of veal broth, stir well, and add some salt 
and pepper. Reduce for about fifteen minutes, stir- 
ring until it boils, add one teaspoon of chopped par- 
sley, one-half a teaspoon of grated nutmeg, one- 
half a cup of cream, and the beaten-up yolks of two 
eggs. Put on the fire again for three or four minutes. 
Do not let boil, and serve hot. 

Cauliflower "in S tufa to " 

Remove the outer leaves and clean a fine cauli- 
flower. Cut it into several pieces and wash them well 
with cold water, put them into a pot of boiling salted 
water, and cook quickly for twenty or thirty minutes, 
until they are quite tender. Take them out without 
breaking, and place them on pieces of buttered toast, 
then put some butter in a frying-pan, add a little flour 
mixed with some stock, stir well until it boils, then add 
several finely chopped mushrooms, and cook a little 
more. Take it off the fire, and add the yolks of two 
eggs which have been well beaten, salt, pepper, 
grated nutmeg, and the juice of one lemon. Pour this 
sauce over and round the cauliflower, and serve. The 
sauce must not be boiled after adding the eggs. 
47 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Celery Fried 

Cut off the green leaves, and cut the stalks of the 
celery in pieces about an inch long. Wash them 
and then put them into boiling water for fifteen 
minutes. Then dry on a napkin. Beat up an egg 
with a little stock, or hot water, add salt and pepper, 
dip the celery in, then roll it in bread crumbs, and fry 
in boiling lard. 

Celery with Tomato Sauce 

Cut off the green leaves, clean and wash the celery 
stalks, and then throw them into boiling water and boil 
fast for twenty minutes. Drain, dry well, put them 
on a dish, and pour a pint of tomato sauce, or tomato 
paste diluted with hot water, over them. 

Tomatoes "alia Piemontese ,, 

Take four rather unripe tomatoes of about the same 
size, put them into boiling water and boil for a few 
minutes. Cut off the stem part, and take out some 
of the inside with as many seeds as you can. Fill 
them with boiled rice and some mushrooms chopped 
up small. Pour over them the yolks of two eggs, 
place them in the oven to color; serve hot. 

Tomatoes "alia Spagnuola" 

Take three or four large ripe tomatoes and boil them. 
Lay them on a sieve to drain until wanted, and then 
pass them through a fine hair-sieve. Put them in a 
stew-pan and stir until all the liquid is evaporated. 
Then add a small piece of butter and three or four raw 
eggs, stirring them quickly with the tomatoes. When 
the eggs are cooked, turn all out into a dish and serve 
hot. 

48 



VEGETABLES 



Tomatoes with Eggs 

Choose round tomatoes of about equal size and peel 
them. Cut off their tops, take out their insides, and 
drop a raw egg into each, replacing the top as cover. 
Put the tomatoes in a baking-dish and bake for about 
ten minutes, until the eggs are set. Serve up in the 
baking-dish very hot, with Bechamel sauce (see Sauces, 
page 29), or some brown gravy. 

Tomato Pudding 

Scald, peel, and slice eight tomatoes. Squeeze out 
three-quarters of their juice into a bowl through cheese- 
cloth, and put it to one side; then chop up the pulp of 
the tomatoes with two tablespoons of bread crumbs, 
a little salt, sugar, and pepper, and a tablespoon of 
melted butter. Pour them in a buttered mold, place 
the mold in a double boiler, and put on the 'cover, 
and boil hard for one hour. Then turn out on a dish! 
Meanwhile take the juice of the tomatoes, season with 
sugar, salt, and pepper, mix in one tablespoon of butter 
rolled in flour. Boil one minute, then pour over the 
pudding and serve. 

String-beans "in Fricassea" 

Cut off the ends and string some young string-beans 
Cook them in salted water, then drain them well. 
Put them in a saucepan with some butter, parsley 
and chopped onion. Be careful to add occasionally 
some broth if the beans dry up before they are com- 
pletely cooked. Boil slowly, and a few moments be- 
fore taking them off the fire add the yolks of one or 
two eggs (according to the quantity of beans) well 
beaten up with a little water, the juice of a lemon and 
some grated Parmesan cheese. Stir from time to time 
49 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

and never allow them to boil, or the eggs will set. To 
keep the beans a good color put a pinch of soda into 
the water with the salt. 

String-beans with Tomatoes 

Take some young string-beans, cut off the ends, and 
string them. Wash them in cold water, drain, and 
while still wet put them into a baking-dish with some 
good olive-oil, some chopped onion and parsley, salt, 
and pepper. Put the dish on the fire with its cover on, 
and cook slowly. As the beans dry add the juice of 
some tomatoes, or some good tomato conserve. Take 
care they do not burn. 

Fried Bread with Raisins 

Take some rather stale bread, cut it into slices, re- 
moving the crust. Fry the bread in lard, and then 
arrange it on a platter; meanwhile prepare the raisins 
as follows: Take a small saucepan and put into it 
two tablespoons of good raisins, a good slice of 
raw ham chopped into small pieces, and a leaf of 
sage, also chopped up, one tablespoon of granulated 
sugar, and two tablespoons of good vinegar. Put 
these ingredients on the fire, and as soon as you have 
a syrup (stir constantly) pour the raisins onto the 
pieces of fried bread, and the sauce over and around 
them. Served with cold meat these are very nice. 



MEATS 

Fried Sweetbreads, Croquettes, Liver, Etc. 

(Fritto Misto alia Romana) 

Golden Bread, Brains, Sweetbreads, Croquettes of 
Chicken and Veal and Eggs, Calf's Liver and Pump- 
kin — all these different ingredients should be fried 
each in its own manner as follows, a small quantity 
of each, and served all together on one platter 
with slices of lemon. 

Golden Bread 

Choose bread which is elastic, but has no holes in it. 
Remove the crust and cut it in slices about one inch 
thick, and from these slices cut little pieces about 
three inches long and about one inch wide. Trim 
them off well, so they will not be ragged or uneven. 
Put these pieces into a bowl and throw on them some 
boiling water, then remove them immediately and 
throw them into a big bowl of cold water. This opera- 
tion should be done quickly, so as to make the bread 
feel the impression of heat and cold, one directly after 
the other. Then take the bread between the hands 
and gently squeeze out the water without breaking 
the pieces or deforming them. Place them on a nap- 
kin to dry. Then dip them in egg which has been 
beaten up and seasoned with salt and pepper. Allow 
the egg to soak well into the bread. Fifteen minutes be- 
5i 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

fore serving put a frying-pan on with a quantity of lard, 
and as soon as the lard is lukewarm put in the pieces 
of bread, turn them as soon as they harden a little on 
one side. The bread must fry very slowly, and should 
remain on the fire at least ten minutes, so that the heat 
can penetrate gradually into the middle and make it 
light. This bread to be successful should be hollow 
inside like a fritter when finished. When the bread 
has taken a good golden color, remove from the lard, 
drain it on a napkin, add a little salt, and serve very 
hot. 

Sweetbreads 
Parboil the sweetbreads, then cook them with one 
tablespoon of butter and one tablespoon of stock. 
When cooked cut them into smallish pieces, season with 
pepper, chopped-up parsley, and one tablespoon of 
lemon, then roll them in flour; dip into egg and fry. 

Fried Brains 

Take one lamb's brain, or one-half of a calf's brain, 
put it in a saucepan with cold water, change the water 
from time to time for a couple of hours, until the brains 
are thoroughly cleansed. Then put them in another 
saucepan with fresh water, and with several pieces of 
onion, a little salt, a little vinegar (one tablespoon 
to each brain), and some parsley stems. As soon as 
the water boils, take the saucepan off, remove the 
brains, and put them onto a napkin. Cut them into 
four pieces, put these pieces onto a plate, and 
season with a little olive-oil, some lemon juice, 
and chopped parsley. When you are ready to fry, 
roll in flour, dip in egg, and fry the brain over a 
moderate fire for seven or eight minutes in olive-oil, 
lard, or butter. 

52 



MEATS 



Calf's Liver Fried 

Remove the skin, and cut into slices large but thin, roll 
in flour, dip in egg, and fry in boiling lard, allowing them 
to remain in the frying-pan only a couple of minutes; 
then drain on a napkin, sprinkle on a little salt, and serve. 

Polenta Croquettes 

Boil one-half cup of corn-meal rather hard, and be- 
fore removing from the fire add a piece of butter and 
a little grated cheese and mix well. Take it then by 
spoonfuls and let it fall onto a marble-top table, or a 
bread-pan which has been wet a little with cold water. 
These spoonfuls should form little balls about the size 
of a hen's egg. On each of these croquettes place a 
very thin slice of Gruyere cheese, so that the cheese 
will adhere to the corn-meal. Then allow them to cool, 
and when cold dip into egg, then into bread crumbs, 
and fry in boiling lard. 

Egg Croquettes 

Hard boil two eggs, remove the shells, dry them, and 
cut the eggs in minute pieces. Put one tablespoon 
of butter into a saucepan, and when it is melted add 
one and one-half tablespoons of flour; stir constantly 
for a few moments over a slow fire with a wooden spoon, 
taking care that the flour does not color. Then pour 
in one-third of a cup of milk, in which you have put 
salt and pepper. Cool this sauce for eight or ten 
minutes, stirring continually to make it smooth, then 
remove from the fire, put in the chopped-up egg, some 
parsley chopped fine, and one-half tablespoon of grated 
Parmesan cheese. When you have mixed these ingredi- 
ents well together, spread them out on a plate or 
marble and allow to cool. When this has become cold 
5 S3 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

and hardened, with a wooden spoon divide it into 
little portions about the size of a nut. Take these and 
roll them in dried bread crumbs and a little flour. Roll 
them all then, one at a time, with a rotary motion, and 
then elongate the balls until they are the shape of 
ordinary corks, then dip the croquettes into the egg, one 
at a time, then into bread crumbs again, and a few mo- 
ments before serving fry in boiling lard. As soon as 
they are colored remove them immediately from the 
lard, otherwise they will break to pieces. 

Polenta Fritters, Fried Pumpkin, Fried Squash, and 
Parsnips may also be added or substituted if desired. 

Little Filets "alia Napolitana " 

Butter well a frying-pan, and sprinkle over the bot- 
tom a piece of lean ham (raw if possible) chopped up 
fine. Then a layer of mushrooms chopped fine, then 
a layer of minced parsley. The bottom of the pan should 
be entirely covered with these three ingredients. Then 
from a filet of beef cut some little slices, about one- 
half an inch thick and round in shape. Put these in 
the frying-pan, one piece near the other, so the bottom 
shall be covered. Sprinkle on salt and pepper, and 
put it on the fire. When the filets are cooked, on one 
side, turn them over on the other, but with care, so 
the ingredients at the bottom of the pan will stick to 
the meat. When the filets are cooked on both sides, 
squeeze on the juice of half a lemon, and add a little 
meat stock. Put the filets on a platter, and pour over 
them their sauce, and serve with croutons (fried bread). 

Involtini of Beef " alia Siciliana " 

Take three-quarters of a pound of beef, two ounces 
of ham, one tablespoon of butter (or one-half table- 

54 



MEATS 



spoon of lard), some bread, some parsley, and a piece 
of onion. Chop up the onion fine and put it in a 
saucepan with the butter (or lard). When it is colored, 
put in the parsley and the ham cut up into little pieces, 
at the same time add the bread cut up into three 
or four small dice, salt, pepper, and a dash of nutmeg. 
Mix all together well. Cut the meat into six slices, 
pound them to flatten out; salt slightly, and when the 
other ingredients are cooked, put a portion on each 
slice of meat. Then roll up the meat like sausages, 
put them on skewers, alternating with a piece of fried 
bread of the same size. Butter well, roll in fresh 
bread crumbs, and broil on the gridiron over a slow 
fire. These are nice served with salad. 

Polpettone "alia Napolitana " 

Take three-quarters of a pound of lean beef without 
skin or bones from the rump-steak, flatten it out with 
a knife in a manner to widen it without tearing the 
meat. Salt and pepper it. Then take one and one- 
half ounces of ham, fat and lean, and chop it up fine 
with a little piece of onion, some parsley, and some 
thyme, then add twice its volume of fresh bread 
crumbs (which have been dipped in water and squeezed 
out) . When the bread has been well mixed add the yolk 
of one egg and mix again well, spread this mixture all 
over the surface of the beef, leveling it off with a knife. 
Then sprinkle on a few raisins, and then roll up the 
meat like a cigar, but bigger in the middle than at the 
ends. Tie it up then, crosswise and lengthwise, and 
brown it in a saucepan with a little lard and some 
ham. As soon as it colors add some chopped-up 
pieces of onion, celery, carrot, and one clove. When 
these vegetables are cooked add several pieces of 
55 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

tomato, and let the meat simmer for about two hours, 
basting it now and then. When the meat is cooked 
remove the string, place the polpettone on a platter, 
strain the sauce through a sieve, pour it over the meat, 
and serve. 

Bocconcini 

Cut up the meat, lamb, veal, mutton, or fresh pork 
into pieces about two inches wide. Sprinkle on salt 
and pepper and put them aside. Then cut an equal 
number of pieces of bread about one-half inch thick, 
and a little bit bigger then the pieces of meat. Next 
cut pieces of ham, fat and lean, the same size as the 
pieces of meat, but double the number. Then take a 
skewer (or two if one is not sufficient), and put on it 
first a piece of bread, then a piece of ham, then a leaf 
of sage, then one of the pieces of meat, then another 
leaf of sage, then the ham, then the bread, and so on 
in this order, having always the meat between two leaves 
of sage, two slices of ham, and two pieces of bread. 
Coat everything well, and especially the bread, with 
olive-oil or melted butter, and then broil them over 
a hot fire for a good one-quarter of an hour, turn- 
ing them constantly until they are colored a golden 
brown and are crisp. If preferred, these can be cooked 
in the oven. Put them on several wooden skewers, 
and lay them in a pan and cook until brown and crisp. 
Serve with lettuce salad. 

Meat with Ribbon Macaroni 

Take a piece of ham fat, one finger high and four 
fingers wide, chop up fine with a piece of onion, piece 
of celery, piece of carrot, and put into a saucepan. 
Take three-quarters of a pound of meat, either lamb, 
veal, beef, or fresh pork, cut it into several pieces, 
56 



MEATS 



salt and pepper it, and put a pinch of allspice, then put 
it into the saucepan; cook it until it is well colored, 
then add two tablespoons of red or white wine. 
When it is absorbed add one tablespoon of tomato 
paste, dissolved in water, or tomato sauce of fresh 
tomatoes (receipt Tomato Sauce No. i). Cook over 
a moderate fire, one hour longer if the meat is veal 
or lamb, and one and one-half hours to two hours 
for pork or beef, adding water if necessary. 

This meat can be served with Ribbon Macaroni. 
Put the meat in the middle, the macaroni around it, 
and the sauce over all, adding two tablespoons of 
grated Parmesan cheese to the macaroni after it is 
boiled, and mixing well before putting it on the platter. 
Sprinkle on a little more cheese before carrying to the 
table. 

This dish can be made equally well with left-over 
meats of any kind, turkey being especially good served 
this way. 



SALADS 



Salad "del Prevosto" 

Boil in their skins three good-sized potatoes, peel 
them and slice them, then put them into a salad bowl, 
and pour over them one-half a glass of white wine. 
Do this about two or three hours before they are 
wanted, so the potatoes will have time thoroughly to 
absorb the wine. From time to time mix them with 
a fork and spoon to let the wine permeate. A few 
minutes before the meal make a good French salad 
dressing, add some pickled peppers cut up, some 
capers, and some chopped-up parsley, pour on the 
French dressing, mix up well, and serve. 

The Cardinal's Salad 

Wash a good lettuce and a bunch of water-cress. 
Cut a cold boiled beef into strips, add six radishes, 
two hard-boiled eggs chopped up, and one small 
sliced cucumber. Arrange the lettuce-leaves in a 
salad-bowl, mix the other ingredients with a sufficient 
quantity of mayonnaise sauce, put them in the midst 
of the lettuce, and serve. 

Endive Salad 

Take a head of endive, wash it and dry it well, and 
put it into a salad-bowl. Pour over it three table- 
spoons of good olive-oil. Mix one tablespoon of 
58 



SALADS 



honey (or sugar), one of vinegar, and salt and pepper 
in a cup, and pour over the salad just before serving. 

Italian Salad 

Cut one carrot and one turnip into slices, and cook 
them in boiling soup. When cold, mix them with two 
cold boiled potatoes and one beet cut into strips. Add 
a very little chopped leeks or onion, pour some sauce, 
"Lombarda" (see Sauces, page 31), over the salad, 
and garnish with water-cress. 

44 Alia Pollastra" Salad 

Chop up six lettuce-leaves and three stalks of celery, 
cut up the remains of a cold fowl in small pieces, and 
mix with one tablespoon of vinegar and salt and 
pepper in a salad bowl. Pour a cup of mayonnaise 
sauce over, and garnish with quarters of hard-boiled 
egg, one tablespoon of capers, six stoned olives, and 
some small, tender lettuce-leaves. 

"Alia Macedoine" Salad 

Cut into small pieces one cold boiled beet and half 
an onion. Add some cold boiled string-beans, some 
cold boiled asparagus tips, two tablespoons of cold 
cooked peas, one cold boiled carrot, and some celery. 
Mix them together, and pour over all a mayonnaise 
sauce. Add the juice of a lemon and serve. 



DESSERTS 



Chestnut Fritters 

Take twenty good chestnuts and roast them on a 
slow fire so that they won't color. Remove the shells 
without breaking the nuts, and put them into a sauce- 
pan with one level tablespoon of powdered sugar 
and one-half glass of milk and a little vanilla. Cover 
the saucepan and let it cook slowly (simmer) for more 
than a half -hour. Then drain the chestnuts and pass 
them through a sieve. Put them back in a bowl with 
one-half a tablespoon of butter, the yolks of three 
eggs, and mix well without cooking. Allow them to 
cool, and then take a small portion at a time, the size 
of a nut, roll them, dip them in egg, and in bread 
crumbs, and fry in butter and lard, a few at a time. 
Serve hot with powdered sugar. 

Chestnuts "alia Lucifero " 

Take forty good chestnuts and roast them over a 
slow fire. Do not allow them to become dried up or 
colored. Remove the shells carefully, put them in 
a bowl, and pour over them one -half a glass of rum 
and two or three tablespoons of powdered sugar. 
Set fire to the rum and baste the chestnuts constantly 
as long as the rum will burn, turning the chestnuts 
60 



DESSERTS 



about so they will absorb the rum and become 
colored. 

Peaches with Wine 

Take four very ripe peaches, cut them in two, take 
out the stones, peel them, and cut them in thin slices. 
Put them in a bowl and cover them up until wanted. 
Put in a saucepan one glass of red wine, two table- 
spoons of powdered sugar, a piece of cinnamon, and 
a piece of a rind of lemon. Boil these together, and 
then pour the liquid over the peaches in the bowl while 
still boiling. Cover the bowl, and allow it to stand for 
at least two hours. Then turn into the dish in which 
you will serve the peaches and the wine. 

Hot Wine 

Put into the saucepan one pint of red or white wine, 
the first preferred. Add two heaping tablespoons 
of sugar, a piece of rind of lemon or orange, and a 
small stick of cinnamon. Put it onto the fire and 
stir until the sugar is dissolved. When the wine 
boils, strain it through some cheese-cloth and pour it 
into glasses, and serve hot. 

Milk of Almond Ice 

Take one-half pound of almonds. Remove the 
shells and skins, and put them into a large receptacle 
of cold water. Add three bitter almonds to the num- 
ber. Remove them from the water, and pound them 
up in a bowl, adding from time to time a little water. 
Then add more water and put them into a cheese-cloth 
and wring it, to extract all the juices you can. Then 
pound them some more, adding water, and squeeze 
out as before. To the milk you have extracted from 
the almonds add four tablespoons of powdered sugar 
61 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

and one-half tablespoon of orange water; put into the 
freezer and freeze. 

If desired, you can put half the quantity of almonds 
and the other half of cantaloup seeds, pound together, 
and proceed in the same manner. This combination 
is refreshing and delicious. • ' 



INDEX 



A 

Agro Dolce Sauce, 29. 
"Alia Macedoine" Salad, 59. 
"Alia Panna" Sauce, 31. 
"Alia Pollastra" Salad, 59. 

B 

Bechamel Sauce, 25. 

Sauce No. 1, 29. 

Sauce No. 2, 30. 
Beef Soup Stock, 3, 4. 
Bocconcini, 56. 
Bread, Fried, with Raisins, 50. 

Golden, 51. 
Butter Sauce, 31. 

C 

Calf's Brains, Fried, 52. 
Liver, Fried, 53. 
Caramel, for soup stock, 4. 
Cardinal's Salad, 58. 
Cauliflower "in Stufato," 47. 
Celery, Fried, 43, 48. 

with Tomato Sauce, 48. 
63 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Chestnut Fritters, 60. 
Chestnuts "alia Lucifero," 60. 
Chicken, Broth, 4. 

with Polenta, 24. 
Codfish, "alia Giardiniera," 39. 

"alia Marinaia," 39, 40. 

"alia Vino Bianco," 40. 

Soup, 5. 

with Egg Sauce, 39. 

with Green Peppers, 40, 41. 
Cream of Lemon Sauce, 35. 
Cucumbers "alia Toscana," 47. 

D 

"Del Prevosta" Salad, 58. 
Desserts, Section on, 60-62. 



E 



Economical Sauce, 32, ^3- 
Egg Croquettes, 53, 54. 

with Piquante Sauce, 2>2>- 
Eggs, Section on, 35-40. 
Eggs, "alia Benedettina," 38. 

"alia Fiorentina," 36. 

"alia Milanese," 35. 

"alia Monachile," 36. 

"alia Piacentina," 37. 

"alia Romana," 38. 

"alia Sciarmante," 35. 

Lightning Omelette, 37. 

with Peas, 35. 
Endive Salad, ^. 

64 



INDEX 



Filets, little, "alia Napolitana," 54. 

Fish Broth, 5. 

Fish, Section on, 39-41. 

Flan of Vegetables, 46. 

Fried Squash, Parsnips, Celery, and Mushrooms, 43. 

Fritters, Polenta, 22. 



Chestnut, 60. 



Gnocchi, of Farina, 27. 

of Milk, 28. 

of Potato, 27. 
Golden Bread, 51. 



Hot Piquante Sauce, 33. 
Hot Wine, 61. 



H 



Indian Meal (Polenta), 22. 

Involtini of Beef "alia Siciliana," 54. 

Italian Salad, 59. 



Lamb's Brains, fried, 52. 

Lentil Soup, 6. 

Lettuce in the Oven, 46. 

Lettuce Soup, 7. 

Lima Beans with Ham, 43. 

Little Filets "alia Napolitana," 54. 

Lombarda Sauce, 31. 

65 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

M 

Macaroni and Other Pastes, Section on, 9-17. 
Macaroni, "alia San Giovannello," 13. 

Ribbon, 14. 

Sicilian, with Eggplant, 11. 

Timbale of, 16. 

Timbale of Ribbon, 1 7. 

with Butter and Cheese, 10. 

with Meat and Sauce, 10. 

with Tomato Sauce, 9. 
Meat, Sauce, 25, 31, 32, 38. 

with Ribbon Macaroni, 56, 57. 
Meats, Section on, 51-57. 
Milk of Almond Ice, 61, 62. 
Mushrooms, Fried, 43. 

with Rice, 22. 

O 

Onions "alia Parmegiana," 42. 
"alia Veneziana," 42. 



Parsnips, Fried, 43. 
Peaches with Wine, 61. 
Piquante Sauce with Eggs, 36. 
Polenta, "alia Toscana," 23. 

Cake, 26, 27. 

Croquettes, 53. 

Fritters, 22, 23. 

Indian Meal, 22. 

Pasticciata, 25. 

with Chicken, 24. 

with Chopped Sausages, 24. 
66 



INDEX 



Polpettone "alia Napolitana," 55, 56. 

Potato Soup, 8. 

Pumpkin, "alia Parmegiana," 43. 

Fried, 44. 

Soup, 7, 8. 

R 

Ravioli, of Curds and Spinach, 15. 
Sweet, 15. 
with Brains, 15. 
with Bread, 14. 
Rice, etc., Section on, 18-28. 
Rice, "alia Nostrale," 19, 20. 
"alia Romana," 19. 
Soup, 4. 
Timbale, 17. 

with Butter and Cheese, 20. 
with Ham, 21. 
with Mushrooms, 22. 
with Peas, 18. 
with Tomatoes, 20, 21. 
with Tomatoes "all' Indiana," 21; 
Risotto "alia Nostrale," 19. 

with Ham, 21. 
Roux for Sauces, 29. 



Salads, Section on, 58-59. 
Sauces, Roux for, 29. 
Sauces, Section on, 29-34. 
Sausages, Chopped, with Polenta, 24. 
Soups, Section on, 3-8. 
Spaghetti with Tunny-fish, 12. 



SIMPLE ITALIAN COOKERY 

Spinach, a alla Romana," 44. 

in a mold with Mushrooms, 45, 46. 

"in Riccioli," 45. 

Souffle, 44, 45. 
Squash, Fried, 43. 
Stracciatella Soup, 4. 
String-beans, "in Fricassea," 49. 
with Tomatoes, 50. 
Sweetbreads, Fried, 52. 

T 

Timbale, of Macaroni, 16. 

of Ribbon Macaroni, 17. 
of Vermicelli with Tomatoes, 13. 
Tomato Sauce, 9, 10. 

Sauce No. 1, 30. 
Sauce No. 2, 30. 
Sauce No. 3, 30. 
Pudding, 49. 
Tomatoes, "alia Piemontese," 48. 
"alia Spagnuola," 48. 
with Eggs, 49. 
with String-beans, 50. 

V 
Vegetables, Section on, 42-50. 
Vegetable, Chowder, 5. 

Soup, 6, 7. 
Vermicelli, Timbale of, with Tomatoes, 13. 
with Fish, 12. 

with Olive-oil and Anchovies, 11. 
with Olive-oil, Olives, Capers and Ancho- 
vies, 11. 

W 
Wine, Hot, 61. 

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